Rain Dances
by redxcliches
Summary: [Secret Garden] Soon to be shipped off to boarding school, 15 year old Mary must decide whether to leave everything behind and start over new or to keep it in her heart. MaryDickon


**Rain Dances**

When I was feeling at an all time low, I watched my favorite Hallmark Movie, The Secret Garden. Inspired, I began to write this. It may not be finished, but we'll just have to see, right?

**Disclaimer:** I own none of the characters of "The Secret Garden".

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**Chapter One.**

I was staring out my window at the gloomy, grey moors that surrounded me. It had been raining for two weeks now and all that I could do was sit inside and read or do the dreaded sewing Mrs. Medlock was teaching me to do. Watching the rain drip on the sill, I remembered back five years ago when I was only ten. I didn't have to worry about being grown up or, god, the dreaded corsets I was being forced to wear. I hated them with a passion. I never knew what the purpose was for me not to breathe and why I should make my waist any smaller. When I first got here, they wanted to fatten me up! Now I had to get skinnier? It was all strange to me.

I could feel my eyes slowly droop close as I rested my head on my arm. The soft pound of the rain was soothing. Like a lullaby.

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"Mary! Mary, wake up silly." said the familiar voice as she shook my shoulder. Martha, my caretaker, was standing over me with a smile on her face. Strange how a person could age so fast in so few years. Some wrinkles were beginning to crease her forehead, and I could catch a grey hair or two when the light caught just right.

Moaning, I rubbed my eyes, not wanting to be disturbed from my sleep.

"Oh, what is it?" I asked.

"The rain has stopped, an tha birds are chirpin for ya." she said in her heavy Yorkshire accent. First strange when I first came to live at the Estate, I would make fun and consider the people stupid. But now I could sometimes hear myself pick up the speech once in awhile.

My head popped up and my eyes became bigger as I stared out the window. The sun was just peeking through the clouds and beyond the grey, I could see a blue sky coming forth.

"Where's Dickon?" I inquired. It would be wonderful to walk to the garden with him and see if anything were be needing fixed.

"Ay, he's gone to town to pick up some seeds actually." she said, dusting off my breakfast table. "Tha boy, always thinking ahead, mind you. But he should be back abou now."

Getting up off the window seat, I walked to my wardrobe and began ruffling through my clothes to find my coat. Even though it was nearing springtime, it was rather chilly outside in the way that you could see your breath. Pulling out my black wool coat, I fastened the buttons hastily and ran out of my room so quickly that Martha just about scolded me. She would've, but in the end I can run much faster.

Cantering down the stone stairs, I made my way through a labrynth of hallways until I reached the bottom floor and the door out to the kitchen gardens. The sun happily greeted my face, and so did I. Not seeing Mr. Weatherstaff, I made my way out of the kitchen gardens and out to the big fields leading to the walled garden I had come to love.

Walking in the grass, my feet swished through the wet blades. I could see the bottom of my dress getting wet, but I could care less. It was beautiful out with the trees whispering in the light breeze and my hair lightly playing around my neck. Oh. I realized that my hair wasn't up. Mistress wouldn't be to happy about that, but I would just have to make sure I didn't see her around and that Martha wouldn't remember it was down.

Reaching the heavy wooden door soft and moist with rain, I noticed that it was slightly ajar. Pushing it open, I was greeted with the smell of fresh dirt and Dickon tilling the ground not to far off. My feet crunched upon the stray twigs as I approached him.

Looking up, he smiled and said, "Miss Mary."

"Hello Dickon. Martha told me you bought some seeds for the garden."

"Actually, I picked up some seeds for Mr. Weatherstaff. He needed some things for tha fall."

Brushing off his pants, he got up from his crouching position. It was surprising how much he had grown in the few years. His voice was deeper and his body more broader, but I could still see that childhood sparkle in his eye, and he still had that untidy brown hair.

"You look surprised." he said.

"I'm just thinking. Look how many years have passed." I said. "We've grown so much, and we'll soon be leaving this place."

That was atleas half true. At the end of spring, Mrs. Meadlock will be sending me to an all girls school in London. I already hear her complain about the fact that I would be starting later than all the other girls, but I had been able to retort for two years, saying I was taught enough at the time. But I was nearing 16, and I would eventually begin to "court" as she would call it. She already had started to bring young men, and even older ones, to the Estate and I would always have a brash attitude which would make the men think I was not fit to be a wife.

"So it's final then." he said, looking slightly down.

"But I don't want to leave, you know that." I said.par "I know. It's just that..."

"What?" I asked.

He shook his head.

"Nothing. Why don't we just enjoy the day?" he said.

"Okay."

And we strolled around the grounds, eventually reaching the far end of the moors. Tired, I sat down in the deep grass, the ground slightly damp. I would again be scolded for dirtying my dress, but it didn't matter much anymore.

Putting my hands on the back of my head, I laid on the ground, looking up at the clouds lazily drifting by.

"What do you see?" he asked me, joining me on the ground.

"Hmm." I pondered. "I see a bear."

"Where?" he asked.

"Over there." I said, pointing up and to my right. Well, atleast I thought it looked like one.

"How can you see tha?" he asked, beginning to laugh. He always made fun of me, and was the only one who could get away with it without getting pummeled. "It looks more like a fish."

"A fish!" I laughed, rolling over on my side to face him. "That's even more absurd!"

He began to laugh harder too.

"Well, it's all how you look at it, what I'm guessing."

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You like? Hopefully I'll have the muster to continue it. Review please and tell me what you think!par par 


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